Successful Women in Business - Women Business Owners

"The Female Brain: Understanding the Strength & Spirit of the Entrepreneurial Woman" Marcia Reynolds - CoVisioning

Marcia Reynolds CoVisioning 602 954-9030		You can either be the victim of your reactive brain or the master of your destiny with the knowledge of your brain. Come to this session to find out what is going on in the mind of the independent business woman, what makes her strong, unique, and sometimes vulnerable. Then learn how to program your brain for success. - Understand the structure of the brain and the female advantage. - Learn the unique challenges of strong, independent women. - Identify your personal landmines and how to defuse them. - Integrate your new knowledge of the brain into your marketing plans. - Practice a technique for handling difficult situations with ease and grace. Dr. Marcia Reynolds, PsyD, CSP blows the minds of audiences worldwide. Her book, Outsmart Your Brain, is frequently quoted and she has been interviewed on ABC World News and NPR. She is also a past president of the International Coach Federation and world-renowned master coach. Her doctoral research focused on the brain of the high-achieving woman--the gains and drains to her success.



“Improve your Image – Improve Your Income” Janice Hurley-Trailor - The Image Expert

Janice Hurley-Trailor Janice Hurley 480 219-3860		It’s true – how others perceive you and treat you can open your career options or close them. Learn what impacts others perception of you and how you can avoid the top three career killers. This program has “real world” success stories from women who implemented Janice’s advice and sent their careers through the ceiling. You’ll leave with no excuse but to look at yourself as others see you. Four lessons you will take away from this program: - The importance of never looking “old school”. - How to look successful without spending tons of $$. - You’ll find out when and why it is so important to “look the part” - Discover your own personal lies that have been holding you back. Janice Hurley-Trailor is known as The Image Expert. She has more than 20 years experience as a consultant in the business community. She is an international author and speaker on what it takes to project professional excellence and confidence so others see it instantly. Her clients have included individuals making $10.00/hour to 2 million a year. Her goal is that everyone understands how to better use their professional energy for success. She has been featured twice this year in the Arizona Business Gazette for what her coaching has accomplished for other professionals. She was featured on the cover of Office Mangers Observer for her work with women on Professional Image and was recently the Keynote Speaker for Wells Fargo’s Investment Retreat.



2008 SELECTED WORKSHOP PRESENTERS

"Customer Complaints: Miracle Grow for Business" Leslie Clark - Shift, LLC

Leslie Clark Shift, LLC 520 971-0456		When it comes to customer satisfaction what you don’t know can hurt you. Many businesses avoid customer complaints hoping that if the complaints are ignored they will go away. There is only one thing that goes away when customer complaints are ignored….. customers. During this session, participants will learn to use complaints and other information to hit the moving target of customer satisfaction, creating positive change that impacts the bottom line. In this session you'll learn: - Elements to create loyal customers. - How to collect complaint and other customer satisfaction data. - How to decide when to change a process or not. - Measurement techniques to gauge performance when employees are running the show. Leslie Clark founded Shift to combat indifferent customer service. “My goal is to save the world from dodgy service, one business at a time." As the Quality Control Manager for a large automotive group, Leslie developed expertise in analyzing customer satisfaction data and process improvement. As a result the automotive group won numerous customer satisfaction awards. Leslie Clark is an accomplished learning professional and has been designing and delivering curriculum for 7 years. She creates training that provides opportunities for participants to share their knowledge and experience.



"Start-Up Business Basics" Lisha Garcia - Small Business Development Center

Lisha Garcia Small Business Development Center		Free assistance is abundant for entrepreneurs wishing to start and grow a business. The knowledgeable counselors at the Small Business Development Center offer free advice, services and resources to launch your successful enterprise and grow it quickly. Find out how they can help, from an experienced director. Attendees will learn: - How to access free resources on marketing, technology, sales, financing and more - Get the inside scoop on the Certification Process for Women and Minority-owned companies - Discover a multitude of valuable business building strategies free Lisha is a bilingual, bicultural international operations executive with substantial experience in government, non-profit, and the private sector. She serves the people and the businesses of Maricopa County through the Maricopa Community Colleges Small Business Development Center. Her functions include providing technical expertise in private/public partnerships, start-up, minority and women owned business growth and certification, strategic planning and management for small businesses. She also teaches seminars for the SBDC online and specializes in marketing, project design, and program implementation. Currently she is the Director of Diversity and Women’s Business and community affairs liaison. Lisha is also a Business adjunct professor at Gateway Community College and gives seminars throughout the county in English and Spanish.



"Painless Performance Conversations: Tools for Having the Tough Talks with Employees, Colleagues, and Other VIPs" - Marnie Green - Management Education Group, Inc.

Marnie Green Management Education Group 480 705-9394		Why do we most avoid the conversations that are likely to have the greatest impact and meaning on our relationships with others? Some of the most essential skills a business owner must use everyday are the skills of conversation and dialogue. By facing up to often-difficult conversations, business owners can create an atmosphere of enhanced accountability and trust. This session explores how to establish and communicate clear expectations for others and how to conduct difficult performance-related discussions. Based on the award-winning book, Painless Performance Evaluations: A Practical Approach to Managing Day to Day Employee Performance, the workshop presents a useful discussion model that you will be able to use immediately. In this highly participatory session, you will gain a toolbox full of ideas you can implement immediately with those you depend upon. As a result of participating in this program, you will be able to: - Establish a work climate that is conducive to productive conversations about performance in the workplace - Initiate and maintain positive communication about work performance by using a sound approach to management - Provide clear and direct feedback to others without risking the relationship - Prepare and conduct performance discussions that encourage an exchange of information and produce better results Marnie Green’s goal, via her Management Education Group, Inc. is to guide organizational leaders through their workplace challenges. She is the author of Painless Performance Evaluations: A Practical Approach to Managing Day to Day Employee Performance. The book was a finalist in the Best Books USA awards in the management category and a winner of the covted Glyph Award for Best Business/Career book. Her clients include dozens of corporations, start-ups, and government agencies including the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the cities of Las Vegas, NV and San Jose, CA, Wells Fargo, Charles Schwab, and Pearson. Her accomplishments include establishing leadership development programs for the City of Phoenix, Arizona, facilitating strategic planning and team building processes for successful, high growth entrepreneurial firms, and becoming a successful entrepreneur herself, serving clients across the globe.



"Mentoring… Three Key Ways To Speed Up Your Efforts and Gain Results" Catherine Marsh – COO For Auction

Catherine Marsh COO For Auction 602 795-0424		I have learned that mentoring is a gift you give yourself. But what if you haven’t met a mentor yet? How do you find one and what should you expect? This session will answer the following questions: 1. Why is mentoring now a key advantage for successful businesswomen? 2. What does it take to be a mentee and mentor? 3. What is self mentoring and how do you know it is working? 4. How do I start an advisory mentoring board and what do mentees say about the experience? 5. When is it best to join a mentoring group? How do you select such a group and what should you expect to get? Catherine Marsh is the founder and President of COO FOR AUCTION, which offers senior executive talent on an interim basis for small to mid-size companies at very reasonable costs. She created this business tapping into her passion to help entrepreneurs’ deal with growth issues. Executives-for- rent provide senior level talent to help Small Business Owners supplement their management team, provide a fresh look, or offer a different perspective. Primary areas of expertise are business strategy, business plans, advisory boards, marketing, customer services, operations and personnel development. She is known in the business industry for helping clients think through their options to grow their firms by using their management and financial reports and leading teams in discussions. The last four years, her firm contributed an average increase of 30% in revenues with their Phoenix clients. Education and Leadership Forum Mentoring efforts. In the last two years she was the Finance Director. Additionally, she is a Board of Director for the Inspire Foundation, a nonprofit organization assisting the Sunshine Acres Orphanage.



"Organic Marketing: The Care & Feeding of your Business" Michelle Cubas, Enterprise Business Coach - Positive Potentials LLC & Armchair Publisher

Michelle Cubas Positive Potentials LLC 480 922-9699		Organic Marketing is Positive Potentials’ preferred business model. It is marketing driven and focuses on customer-centric and partner strategies for optimum exposure and clout. You'll learn: - The 10 Must-Haves in your marketing plan. - How to create top-of-mindshare for you and your services/products using emotionally intelligent language. - Create a Demand-for-Your-Brand™ by your audience sector. Relate what you have to what they want by sharing information. - Keep your message and presence in the marketplace by being memorable. - Create additional revenue streams for residual income while protecting your intellectual capital, the secret sauce! Michelle Cubas, CP/BVA, is an executive, enterprise coach, author, NSA speaker and founder of Positive Potentials LLC, an advanced enterprise coaching and consulting company since 1982. As an Arizona Quality Alliance (AQA) Board Examiner based on Malcolm Baldrige Quality Principles, Michelle advises and guides companies to raise quality and process excellence to actively achieve their vision.



"Turn Hidden Sales Potential into Money" Jeffrie Story – Unleash Your Sales DNA®

Jeffrie Story Unleash Your Sales DNA® 480 367-8887		We all have hidden “sales DNA” to earn what we want and deserve. And our potential doesn’t need to stay hidden! How can we go after it? The key to earning more is discovering those hidden inhibitors and changing them! In Jeffrie’s presentation, you’ll see yourself in new ways—ways that shed a powerful light on how to increase your income. You’ll learn: 1. The scientific key predictor of sales success vs. the myth 2. Uncovering your potential and your inhibitors 3. Small things that can make a huge difference 4. Where to focus first in gaining your power for more success Jeffrie Story helps businesses drive more new business. She has robust and record-breaking experience in sales and marketing at a Fortune 500 company. She combines innovative, scientific tools with her experience and passion for personal transformation. Jeffrie is President of Unleash Your Sales DNA® in Scottsdale, Arizona, and a licensee for Behavioral Sciences Research Press, Inc., the discoverers of Sales Call Reluctance®. She is also a Certified Sales Executive, a member of the National Speakers Association and columnist for MacDonald Advertising Service.



"Wealth Building Strategies That Last a Lifetime." Wendy Kenney, Metlife Financial Services

Wendy Kenney Metlife Financial Services		You've worked hard to build your business, now it's time to put your business to work for you. Learn tax smart strategies for growing your wealth and preparing for the financial future that you've dreamed of. Attendees will learn: - Tax smart wealth building strategies for business owners. - Mistakes to avoid in planning for the future. - Tips to insure your wealth last a lifetime. Wendy Kenney got her first taste of success as a business owner when she helped her family run their crop dusting business. Since then she owned several successful businesses and has not looked back. She became a financial planner in 1998 at the urging of friends and family who for years had come to her for her sound advice and no nonsense approach. As a financial advisor, Wendy's passion is educating business owners so that they can make the right decisons about their money. She tells the truth on important issues such as Social Security and planning for your loved ones with special needs. In 2008 she successfully passed the Certified Financial Planner curriculum at Arizona State University. Wendy has contributed articles to magazines and writes the popular column Your Money for Doctor of Dentistry Magazine.



"Find Your Hidden Millions Selling Your Product on QVC!" Kim Babjak - KimCo LLC

Kim Babjak KimCo LLC 602 795-4045		This presentation will appeal to many who have been apprehensive about getting out of their current situation, and finally deciding to develop a product they have been dreaming about for years. They will learn the difference between a product idea they are in love with, and a product that the consumer will actually buy. With the thousands of out of work, recent layoff victims or people who are truly tired of making others rich; they will get a lesson in product development that will help them make the leap of a lifetime, or not!. 5 lessons attendees will learn with this session include: 1. How to develop a winning product 2. How and where to market your product effectively 3. How to get your products in mass retailers, QVC & HSN, and Catalog 4. How to keep your products selling in mass retailers 5. How to turn your product in a business Kim Babjak, founder of KimCo LLC, is a mother of four, entrepreneur, inventor, author and speaker, who despite only completing the 10th grade, was determined to create and realizing her dreams of product development. Due to Babjak’s tenacity and sheer determination, she was recognized with the SCORE 2005 “Client of the Year” award. Babjak has overcome stifling circumstances that would have crippled 90% of our other clientele,” says her counselor Roger Robinson. KimCo has branched out into helping other client’s get their products into the exciting world of electronic retail on QVC. Kim is currently working with celebrity clients like Donald Trump and Robert Kioysaki’s book “Why We Want You to be Rich” and other Rich Dad Poor Dad lines of financial literacy tools to include books, CD’s and DVD products for Home Shopping TV. Kim is currently working with Emmy award winning celebrity Maria Conchita Alnoso, on a clothing line called SOY that will be introduced to Home Shopping TV in fall 2009.



"Get in the Big Game: Creating A Winning Online Brand" Lori Martinek - Presentation Plus

Lori J. Martinek Presentation Plus 623 537-0888		This energetic, interactive presentation focuses on the essentials of building, promoting and protecting an online brand for entrepreneurs and success-minded professionals. Learn how to leverage the power of the Internet to 'Be Visible and Get Found' online by prospective customers from this branding expert and author who is teaching business audiences across America how to make the big plays. Google her! You'll be impressed. What attendees will learn from this workshop experience: - How to develop a brand that is meaningful to their target audience and works well online. - How to implement attainable, affordable online marketing, search engine and social networking strategies that get big results fast! - How to claim their name, raise their profile online and develop a winning personal brand. Lori Martinek’s 29 years of experience on all sides of the marketing equation (agency/client/media) has made her a sought-after branding strategist in the economic development, community marketing and corporate identity arenas. As the owner of Presentation Plus, an award-winning marketing and public relations firm serving an international client base, Martinek works side by side with CEOs and top executives to get them, and their organizations, noticed. Martinek has counseled association clients, economic development agencies and chambers of commerce throughout the Midwest and in Arizona. She is an accomplished speaker and a consultant and coach to CEOs, community leaders, elected officials and political candidates. Martinek has also served as a Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Marketing and New Business Development Counselor in Arizona (Maricopa) and Illinois is a former president, board member and consultant to chambers of commerce, charitable foundations and other non-profit ventures.



"Meet the Media" Eileen Proctor & Susan Ratliff - Small Business Power Hour on the Road Show

Speak Top Dog Speak Top Dog Business Boosters 602-867-3647 Susan Ratliff Presents Exhibit Experts 602-828-1177		Join Eileen and Susan as they bring their unique simulated radio-show format to Boot Camp where they will interview and interrogate a panel of local media experts to uncover the nitty-gritty details of what it takes to catch a reporters interest and get free publicity for your business or your cause. This high energy duo will facilitate a lively discussion, involve the audience and ask the tough questions everyone wants to know about working with the media. Attendees will learn: 1. The topics of interest guaranteed to get a story 2. What works, what doesn’t and what turns reporters off 3. Secrets that will make you a reporter’s resource 4. The best ways to connect with the media and more Susan Ratliff is the founder/producer of the Women Entrepreneurs' Small Business Boot Camp. She is a published author, charismatic speaker and an award-winning entrepreneur who built her businesses with the help of free publicity. Susan is President of Exhibit Experts and a recognized authority on exhibit marketing providing products and services that help companies sell more and look great at tradeshows and events. Eileen Proctor is the Top Dog of Top Dog Business Boosters, a strategic marketing and training company committed to the distinctive needs of entrepreneurs, small & micro businesses striving to get the "leg up" on their competition. She is also nationally renowned as the pioneer of the dog daycare industry in Arizona's Valley of the Sun with multi-award winning, It's a Ruff Life! Eileen is a prolific author, coveted broadcast and print personality, and celebrated professional speaker.

Ilana Lowery, "Meet the Media" Panelist

		Ilana Lowery was named editor of the Phoenix Business Journal in August 2001. She had been managing editor of the paper since 1999. Lowery joined the publication as a reporter and projects editor in 1995. As a reporter she covered banking and finance, travel, aviation, tourism and sports business. In 1997, she was named associate editor and was responsible for the newspaper’s day-to-day operations, as well as its special sections and monthly magazines. Currently, Lowery serves on the advisory board of the WellCare Foundation, is a member of the Hon Kachina Board of Governors, and is a long-time supporter of the Southwest Autism Resource and Research Center. In addition, she serves as a guest lecturer at Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communications. In 2005, Lowery also was honored as a Woman of Distinction by the Girl Scouts Arizona Cactus-Pine Council and in 2008, she was honored with a Woman of Distinction award by the Crohns and Colitis Foundation of America – Southwest.

Hope H. Ozer, "Meet the Media" Panelist

		Renaissance woman Hope H. Ozer is founder and publisher of top rated niche market community newspaper CITYSunTimes, serving the Northeast Valley. She was selected for the 2008 Golden Heart of Business Award. Amongst a myriad of skills and talents, she is a columnist, award winning community advocate, photographer, markswoman and equestrian. Hope is founder of the board of directors of nationally acclaimed Valley Youth Theatre, now celebrating its 20th Season. She has an extensive background in non-profit fundraising and board governance, having held leadership positions on several community and municipal boards. Hope is a mother and grandmother. She resides in the Town of Paradise Valley with her husband of 39 years, Jay S. Ozer.

Jessica Parsons, "Meet the Media" Panelist

		Jessica Parsons’ media career began in television in 1993 as an Assignment Editor for KTVK-3TV, while finishing coursework at Arizona State University for a degree in journalism. After receiving her Bachelor’s Degree, she led a team of writers as News Producer for 3TV’s “Good Morning Arizona” news-magazine show. Parsons was recruited by FOX-13 in Memphis, Tennessee as a reporter and producer, but couldn’t stay away from Arizona, the place she’s called home since grade school. Back at 3TV a year later, as a writer and field producer with a beat focused solely on health and fitness, is where she found her niche and passion for writing and telling stories. Parsons expertise in journalism, and live television news producing helped her land the role of a lifetime- Editor of Phoenix Woman magazine. “To bring fun, interesting and meaningful stories to the women of Phoenix, while promoting women in business and their philanthropic efforts has been a dream come true”.

Renee York, "Meet the Media" Panelist

		Renee York has gotten used to moving up! A second generation Arizonan, she moved from Kingman to Phoenix in 1997 to pursue a restaurant management career. A year later, she got her feet wet at a title insurance company as a receptionist, then worked her way up to escrow officer. The radio bug bit, and she attended a radio-TV technical school, which led her to a part-time gig at 1510 KFNN, Financial News Radio as a board operator. That eventually morphed into a full-time job as an Operations Assistant, and to where Renee is now as Operations Manager. In the decade Renee’s been at KFNN, she’s been a PSA Director, news anchor and voice-over talent. Renee’s kids are her two cats and a dog, and whenever she has any free time left over– which is extremely rare! – she’s is an avid filmgoer and Phoenix Coyotes fan.

Erin Lange, "Meet the Media" Panelist

		Erin Lange is an emmy-award-winning television news producer. She has a BJ from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has worked in TV markets from Arizona to Indiana. Her career began in a small town in mid-Missouri, where she started out as a reporter. Within a year, she found her real passion was in the selection and presentation of new stories and shifted into a producer position, in order to take a leadership role in the newsroom. Erin currently produces the 5pm news for KTVK in Phoenix, where she fields story pitches, scours press releases and decides what news to cover on a daily basis. Erin is currently serving as interim Executive Producer as well, so she is making decisions and selecting stories for at least four diverse newscasts each day.



Mistress of Ceremonies Vickie Mullins, Mullins Creative

Vickie Mullins Mullins Creative		Vickie Mullins is the president of Mullins Creative, Inc., an award-winning graphic design company she founded in 1991. Her creative staff listens to their clients and creates professional communications solutions to meet their needs – from newsletters to brochures to trade show graphics. In 2005 Vickie started a second company, Azure Eyes Publishing and launched a speaking career on the heels of authoring the first of eight volumes in her "I Want You To Know Me" heirloom book series. An energetic and entertaining communicator, Vickie’s friendly demanor and caring style touch the hearts of audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Mullins Creative has been a sponsor of and Vickie has taken an active part in the production of the Women Entreprenuer’s Small Business Bootcamp since its inception in 2005.